the death toll has passed 500 in the typhoon that smashed into the philippines on tuesday, with more than 400 people still missing. rescuers dug through mud and debris again today, to retrieve bodies in the hardest hit compostela valley region. some 250 people died there. more than 300,000 others lost their homes in the storm. president o blamea-- obama will ask congress for $50 billion for hurricane sandy. they announced it today in a statement the money is to help rebuild road, tunnels and assist thousands of people forced from their homes. those are those are some of the day's major stories. now, back to judy. >> woodruff: the u.s. supreme court announced today that for the first time in its history it would review the contentious issue of same-sex marriage. for more on the story we turn to margaret warner. >> warner: the justices agreed to hear arguments in two cases: one is california's constitutional ban on same-sex marriage, adopted by voters as referendum proposition 8. it was challenged on grounds that gay citizens have the same constitutional right to marry as heterosexuals